The blank reply is the hard part. Tell AI what happened and what you want to say, and it writes a clear, polite draft in seconds. You read it, fix a detail, and send. Here's the whole trick on one page.
The fill-in recipe
Paste this into ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini and fill the blanks:
- Write a short email to [who it's for].
- About: [what happened, in one line].
- I want them to: [reply / send a quote / reschedule].
- Tone: [friendly but professional].
Replying to something? Paste their message too — it'll use the details.
Just name the tone
AI matches whatever tone you say out loud. Pick one:
friendlyprofessionalwarm but brieffirm and politeapologeticupbeat
Too stiff? "Make it sound like a real person." Too long? "Cut it in half."
The 60-second routine
1Tell it who it's to, what happened, and what you want.
2Paste the message you're replying to, if there is one.
3Read the draft. Fix every name, date and number yourself.
4Good? Copy and send. Not quite? Ask for one change.
The tricky ones, solved
- Say no: "Decline this, warm but clear — no maybe."
- Chase a reply: "A gentle nudge on my last email."
- Bad news: "Say this kindly, then give the next step."
- Ask for money: "A polite reminder that invoice #12 is due."
- Fix the tone: "Less formal, like I'd talk to a regular."
The one rule to keep
AI writes the draft — you own the send. Read it once and fix any name, price or date before it goes out. A good email in your voice beats a perfect one that isn't yours.